BEVERLY HILLS, April 11, (THEWILL) – In a game marked by controversy, Nigeria international Victor Osimhen scored for his Serie A team Napoli to complete their convincing victory over Sampdoria with a goal in each half for a 2-0 triumph at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris in Genoa on Sunday.
The three points carried the I Partenopei to within three points of third-placed defending champions Juventus FC. This keeps Osimhen’s side’s pursuit of a top-four finish on course with eight Matchdays left and Atalanta closely snapping at their heels for a place in Europe.
Gennaro Gattuso’s charges found the opener through Fabian Ruiz five minutes after the half hour mark after the Spanish applied the finish to a flowing move from the Azzurri. The final pass from Piotr Zielinski met his left footed shot from outside the area to nestle the ball in the bottom right corner.
Morten Thorsby headed home what seemed to be a well-worked equaliser that levelled the scores in the 74th minute, but the goal was ruled out following a VAR check after Thorsby had been adjudged to have committed a foul in the lead-up to the goal. The goal was not allowed to stand and Napoli kept their lead.
Osimhen then calmed the Partenopei nerves with his wonder strike in the 87th minute from the middle of the box. The Nigerian latched onto a brilliant inviting through pass from Dries Mertens after a Napoli fast break to make it 2-0.
There was one last free kick to reach for goal by Napoli but it turned out to be nothing more than a missed chance and they settled for the two nil, grateful to be within the reach of Europe slots for next season.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
